From college grad to adulthood -
navigating the quarterlife crisis
By Penelope Trunk, Globe Correspondent, 2/20/05
Scott Newbury flew into Logan Airport in the middle of the
night. He went straight home to his office where the blue light of
his computer glared a screen full of unfinished work that piled up
while he was gone. He sat down at the keyboard and had a
revelation: He had to quit this job. So, he gave notice. He has no
other job lined up. He has no real plan for how he will make
money. But the career he had was not fulfilling.
One of the contributions Generations X and Y have made to
the workplace is the quarterlife crisis. It's not the midlife crisis,
typified by a baby boomer in a Porsche obsessively speeding. The
quarterlife crisis happens in one's twenties and more likely
involves takeout pizza and obsessive IM-ing.
The journey toward crisis begins at college graduation, when
the typical student has about $10,000 in loans and no skills to
land a job. Frank Furstenberg, professor of sociology at the
University of Pennsylvania and author of the forthcoming book,
"On the Frontier of Adulthood," says the transition to adulthood
is "more arduous today than it was fifty years ago." Employers
don't hire people in their early 20s for staff jobs. "Employers hire
temps for positions that don't require experience," he said.
"Society can incorporate people only when they get some
experience working and there is a better match between
employee and employer."
With little to lose, most twentysomethings use their
postcollege time as an opportunity to find themselves, see what's
available, and try a lot on for size. (Which translates to 8.6 jobs
before the age of 32, according to the Department of Labor.)
The new behavior, which looks remarkably like flailing, is
appropriate for the new workplace. Jeffrey Arnett, developmental
psychologist at the University of Maryland and author of
"Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood: A Cultural Approach,
Revised" says, "People have different personal time tables and
it's nice that people can make choices that are right for them."
Yet this new phase in one's career is unnerving in light of
the stability of previous generations of people in their 20s. And if
the job-hopping doesn't stop by age 30, the stress intensifies to
crisis.
Emerging adults "have high expectations for work. It is not
just a way to make a living,'' says Arnett. "They want work to be
fulfilling and to be an expression of their identities."
This is true for Alexandra Robbins, 28. She took the first job
offered to her after college because she was "seduced by the
trappings: Short commute, friends at the company, office with a
door. The pay was fine, but the work was not rewarding."
She realized that in the postcollege world, people are judged
by their answer to the question, "So, what do you do?" And she
knew she needed to do something that could define her.
She doesn't have extravagant dreams: "I never had a big
dream. I wanted to make a living writing. Dreams that are too
specific lead to missed opportunities."
She has become a sort of spokeswoman for the generation of
lost college graduates. Her recent book, "Conquering the
Quarterlife Crisis: Advice for Twentysomethings Who Have Been
There and Survived," chronicles the ups and downs of people like
her, who finally found their way.
Like Furstenberg, Robbins sees that previous generations
were more equipped to make the transition to adulthood. "We
cannot gain a foothold in society until age 30. But our parents'
generation has 20 in their head. The crisis is a clash of
generations." Fifty years ago, people expected to find a job for
life right after college and be married with kids by 24. But for the
current generation, Robbins declares, "Thirty is the new 20."
Sure, Generation Xers and Yers have high expectations for
work, and maybe they're unreasonable, "but the only way to find
out is to try," says Arnett. "Most people will fail. But by the time
people are in their late 20s most have made peace with their
dreams. Psychologically people tend to accommodate themselves
to whatever they have."
The problems start around age 27 or 28, when most people
find a career. For those who do not feel settled, there is panic
and what Arnett calls "desperate and dangerous" measures -
such as quitting a job and not having any savings - in order to
reach their goals.
Which brings us back to Newbury, whose wife gave birth last
week to their first child. He is going to stay home with the baby
girl while his wife supports the family as a consultant. He plans
to write music for commercials, though he has scant experience
in the trade.
And, he says, he will "write some novels and shop them
around." Newbury wants to support his family in five years but
has not figured out how many novels or musical compositions he
would need to sell to do that.
Those people who are not turning 30 might bristle at
Newbury's plan. But, he says, speaking for many in his
generation, "I don't want to be 80 and regret not taking this
risk."
Penelope Trunk can be reached at penelope@penelopetrunk.com
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